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When the computer power is switched off, a battery on the motherboard (or sometimes in the Real Time Clock module itself) keeps the RTC chip ticking over. Yes, this battery can run down, and as a result, on power up, the time can vary - usually, it loses time, or gets reset to 1980 or something silly. All of these third party time programs will set the computer clock to synchronise with an external source (I use World Time Server and the
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program).
However ...
this is not the problem if the time is changing when the computer is on. Windows maintains a tick clock, from which it derives the real time. This tick clock is set when it boots up, from the battery-backed RTC, to a representation of the current time and date. This tick clock is incremented, in hardware, by a signal form that same RTC module. Windows reads this tick clock, and creates the time in the correct format. It may be that the RTC has gone faulty, and not all the ticks are getting through to the CPU hardware. This would be the case if it always loses time. It's hard to see how the clock could gain (if it does) by this method.
I've had a squint through the Microsft Tech Net service, and there's nothing there. My guess is that it's a hardware problem, Steve. You could use the program I highlighted above, which will sync each day and / or each power up. Once it does that, does the fact it's losing time cause you a problem? Other than it being annoying?
Sorry if it was a bit techy.
Gerald
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I think the little CMOS batteries are only £4 ish so despite what some others have said, in your circumstance I would change it just to make sure that is not involved. I run win98 and every now and then I run the Atomic Clock Sync program that Gerald mentions and it is usually out by 5 minutes or so.
When I used to run the Buyertools eBay Sniper tool it automatically sync'd with the time on eBay which allowed very accurate last minute bidding.
Paul
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Ok
I will try to explain what is worrying me.
I look at task bar clock and it says 12.27 verified with my watch.
The next time I look at the clock it is 12.00
It has not lost time it has gone backwards!!!!!!!!!
Now that is what is my concern
Steve
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Hi Steve. When you double click on the time in the taskbar it comes up with an analogue clock and a calender. Does the second hand go backwards?
Just a thought, your not feeling younger by the day are you?? A time machine comes to mind!!!!
Johnny F
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It has not lost time it has gone backwards!!!!!!!!!
Now that is what is my concern
I just posted a huge reply, and then I read your post again. So it's not that it's not keeping up with real time, it's displaying one time, and then it's displaying an earlier time Trés spooky.
There's a thing which can occur whereby a timer chip uses up all of its little storage bits, and rolls over to the next second, which the software interprets as a negative value, and although the timer is still 'ticking', it's going backwards.
* Is it really going backwards, as you describe, or does it suddenly jump to a previous time?
* If you set the time, and it's displayed correctly, and you turn the computer off, when you boot up again, does it dispay the right time +/- a minute or two, or does it display a time / day from an earlier date?
* How old is the computer (hardware)?
*What make is it?
It's an interesting problem, Steve. As you can probably tell, I have very few ideas for you
Gerald
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A time machine comes to mind!!!!
Trés spooky.
